OUR
grasp of time is tenuous at best, from trying to really “get”
relativity to fretting over those lost years when we never managed to
write that novel. Is it any wonder we want time to comfort instead of
alarm?

Perhaps this
explains the happy solace so many men find in the AMC drama “Mad Men,”
that window into the crazily optimistic postwar world, when cigarettes,
steak and three-martini lunches were the fuel an adman needed to dream
up such sterling slogans as “It takes a licking and keeps on ticking”
(coined for Timex in 1956).

That
spirit is there in the period’s watches, too. In the late ’50s, the
playfulness at work in car and furniture design hit the gentlemanly
watch world. In 1957, Hamilton introduced asymmetrical electric
watches, and the line — especially the triangular Ventura — was an
instant hit.

Now, luckily
for those of us who don’t smoke or get lit at lunch but who think of
the “Mad Men” lifestyle with fondness, the look is a hit again. Crazily
inventive ’60s timepieces are among the best sellers at watchismo.com,
a vintage-watch site. And Hamilton’s president, Matthias Breschan,
reports that the company’s new take on the Ventura is selling better
than its most high-tech models.

The look can also be found at the top of the Swiss-watch heap.
Glashütte’s Senator Sixties model recalls President Kennedy’s stylish
merger of stateliness and modernity. Vacheron Constantin’s latest
release, the amazing Quai de I’lle, works a host of features, like a
calendar dial, into a face worthy of Sean Connery’s James Bond.

Even better, these clever watches betray their value to only the most
discerning eye — no diamond bezels here. But say: maybe in 2059, those
will make a comeback, too.For our customer testimonials and recent reviews, go here--> Watchismo Customer Testimonials